Chakra Thirst

Chiyo only yielded due to the urgent need for money that Sunagakure was about to face (when Rasa's gold ran out imminently) and because she believed that after studying the technique, Takara would understand that it wasn't what he expected.

Now what he needed was to prepare some puppet ninja to train them in handling the new puppet, as well as its assembly and operation.

After reaching the agreement, Takara had to return to his workshop for a few minutes to alter the original plans of the centipede carriage before returning to Elder Chiyo to deliver them and collect the two scrolls of the promised techniques.

He left as soon as he verified that they were real and, setting aside the sealing technique, during his journey to the meeting point with Kushina, he was studying the technique of the Reincarnation of One's Own Life by letting 2B's puppet take care of the driving.

"I see, the technique has some restrictions when it comes to using it on the dead, such as the time the dead target has been deceased and the state of their body," Takara reflected as he read the technique once more. "On the other hand, when used on a puppet, the conditions are much more lax, although that makes maintaining the puppet more problematic."

It also raises some questions that he will have to address with caution.

For example, if he were to use this technique on the puppet of Haku that he made, would it be considered as reviving the person or spawning an entirely new life?

If it's the former case, will they become human again?

If it's the latter case, what will be the level of intellectual maturity?

More importantly, was their loyalty assured or was there a possibility of betrayal?

A living being decides whether to follow instructions, while a puppet fulfills them without questioning.

"Let's finish the matter at hand before experimenting," Takara concluded.

The meeting point with the Fourth Hokage's wife was in a small village in the Land of Waves, right on the border with the Land of Wind, whose main business is focused on salt exportation and refinement.

Exactly ten kilometers south, in a rugged and difficult-to-access area for ordinary people, Takara made the preparations while waiting for the resurrected redhead to arrive.

Fifteen minutes before the agreed time, Kushina arrived at the location and looked around.

"Was there any problem?"

"Kya~!" Kushina didn't know how he suddenly appeared in her perception and got scared. "Don't do that!"

Takara silently looked at her in response.

"I have it." Kushina puffed her cheeks when she saw she was being ignored but didn't dare to say anything out of place. She took out the mask and handed it to Takara. "Can you give me what you promised me now?"

Takara didn't take his eyes off the mask, examining it to ensure it was genuine and correct as he waved an arm, and a toxin gave Kushina a thick palm-sized scroll.

"There you have all the information about your son, covering almost everything you need to know over the past twelve years."

And since Kushina didn't attempt anything funny, he even added information about the Uchiha extermination, so she would know what happened to her friend Mikoto.

Kushina was nervous about reading the scroll, but she forcibly looked away from it and glanced at Takara.

"So, now Minato..."

Takara averted his gaze from the mask and fixed it on Kushina.

"Mmm?"

"I... Could I see the scroll with my husband?" Kushina knew she was overstepping, but knowing that Minato would soon emerge from the Shinigami's stomach, she couldn't help but want to share their son's information with him.

Kushina only felt a flicker before finding herself in what seemed to be a room in a noble castle, confused by the abrupt change of environment.

"Wait here," Takara told her, before leaving the room with the mask.

How could he deny Kushina the presence of Minato when she saw what decision he made about her baby?

Takara entered a room where every inch of the surface was covered in countless seals, including spatial locking seals, sensory isolation, sound insulation, etc...

Takara went to great lengths to ensure that Minato wouldn't attempt any tricks and at the same time, these seals nullified the need to wear the mask in front of the Uchiha Clan's Secret Stone Monument.

Two people were frozen in the room, Sakura Haruno and Teuchi.

If anyone were to see the back of their necks, they would see a toxin hanging downwards with the stinger embedded in their neck, taking control of their nerve endings.

Takara said nothing and extended the Shinigami's mask to Sakura, who stiffly took it and put it on her face while tears fell down her cheeks. Then, a wave of chakra was forcibly extracted, and the Shinigami appeared behind her.

"Dead Demon Consuming Seal: Release!"

The Shinigami took the knife it held between its teeth and cut its stomach, causing a similar wound to appear on Sakura's body, while two different lights emerged from the Shinigami's stomach.

Both are Takara's targets: the soul of the Fourth Hokage and the soul of Orochimaru's arms!

"Edo Tensei!"

While Sakura collapsed to her knees with the mortal wound, Takara wasted no time and used the Edo Tensei to use Teuchi as a sacrifice for the Fourth Hokage's resurrection.

As the resurrection process took place and dirt covered Teuchi, Takara didn't forget to retrieve the soul of Orochimaru's arms.

"Clockworker's Secret: Greed Pot!"

A small pot appeared in his hand to suck in the fragment of the soul that would allow Orochimaru to use his arms again without issue, successfully sealing an item for which the Serpent Sannin would be willing to pay generously.

After all, he no longer has a Tsunade to turn to.

Once stored, Takara focused his attention on the resurrected form of Minato as the seals in the room were activated at full capacity.

Minato opened his eyes and, after looking around, looked at his hands to confirm that he had returned to the land of the living.

"I knew it! If I sealed a part of the Kyubi inside me, the village would have no choice but to revive me if they wanted to retrieve it," he murmured to himself with a smile, but not the sunny one he was famous for, but rather with sinister undertones.

Well, Takara can't say that Minato is wrong. It's just that things wouldn't go as the Fourth Hokage seemed to expect.